


Krees and Cryochambers

by PrinceofBadassery



Category: Captain America (Movies)
Genre: Aliens, Canon Compliant, Gen, Hurt Bucky Barnes, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, but not really, cryochamber, winteriron
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-22
Updated: 2016-09-26
Packaged: 2018-08-16 16:33:44
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,155
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8109649
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PrinceofBadassery/pseuds/PrinceofBadassery
Summary: Set seven years after the events of Civil War. The earth didn't last very long when aliens attacked a second time and there were no Avengers to protect them. Now seven years later Tony Stark is making a living repairing tech and trading it when one day he stumbles upon a piece of technology he thought he'd never see in a million years. It was an impulse purchase really...





	1. Chapter 1

Tony was the last one who had thought that after the so-called civil war things could get any worse. 

It somehow did. 

The first time aliens attacked the earth the Avengers were formed and they were successfully beaten, their base destroyed and their leader captured. 

The second time aliens attacked the Avengers had just broken up and the earth never stood a chance. 

Humans weren't eradicated, they weren't enslaved but they weren't exactly free either. Under the new alien reign a lot of things changed. Governments fell like domino stones, society crumbled, police was too busy being rounded up by the aliens to do anything and by the time any form of rule by the aliens had been established there was anarchy in the streets. 

If humans were fighting humans the aliens weren't too bothered and mostly let it happen, it was only when people acted up against them that quickly found them in a prison colony if they were lucky or as slaves (the aliens called it workers) to help strip the planet of its last remaining resources. 

Tony Stark had survived. And it was really just surviving, because without an economy what good does money do? Seven years later and he was still alive and sitting at an underground auction for alien technology. It was the only good thing that came out of this in Tony's opinion, new advanced alien technology. He had gotten his hands on some stuff but these auctions sometimes came up with surprises and he really didn't have anything else to do. 

He was sitting the back, still after all these years, uncomfortable that someone might recognize him as a former Avenger and blame this whole mess on him. People mostly didn't remember him or if they did they didn't care, but Tony was paranoid and so he stayed under the radar. 

Most of the stuff that was put on display was useless junk, yes it was mostly Kree but useless. A piece of hull from a crashed alien spaceship, some tubing, wires etc. Junk Tony wasn't interested in. 

He was dozing off, regretting coming here in the first place when the auctioneer talked but the main price. 

"Preserved human specimen, almost intact, missing the left arm as you can see, but viable. Great for organ harvesting or replacement limbs. Or if you are not interested in the body you might find this intact cryogenic chamber useful."

Tony's eyes went wide when he saw the cryochamber at the front, he didn't know how or why but, he knew WHO was inside it and his hand shot up immediately.

"Yes the man in the back. What's your bid?" 

"I got two functioning Kree repulsion engines in the back of my truck." He said too quickly almost fumbling with his words. He had wanted to use them for another Iron Man suit, at some point in the future, maybe.

The auctioneer looked to the side to the actual seller then back to the crowd. 

"Anybody else?"

People whispered in hushed tones, nobody could top what Tony offered. Tony could tell some of the more dubious figures at the sides were glaring in his directions they probably had their eyes set on the chamber not the man inside, but he knew nobody could outbid him, at least he hoped. 

Tony held his breath when the auctioneer counted down and it seemed to take forever, nobody else had bid why was this taking so long? 

"Three, sold to the man in the back."

Slowly he let go of the breath and leaned back in his chair, relieved, though he wasn't sure why. He had just traded in his most priced possession for a body on ice. He couldn't even be sure the man was still alive in there, for all he knew the guy could be dead. The cryochamber looked beaten up and he had no idea when the man was placed inside, it might have been last month, it might have been seven years ago. That was the last time he had seen or heard from him.

He had to wait till the end of the auction before he had the chamber transported to his truck where he unlocked the strongbox with the two engines and handed them over. The two henchmen of the seller were kind enough to lift the chamber onto the back of the truck and pushed the battery into Tony's hands, quite to his disliking. He couldn't help but notice how the thing looked like a car battery even though it had to have more power than that to keep the cryochamber on.

Tony didn't linger on the thought and put the battery next to the chamber before driving off. The drive back home took over an hour and when he got there he still hadn't made up his mind wheter or not what he had just done was a good thing. 

Dum-E was quick to try and help as he pushed the cryochamber off the truck, trying to get it to land on a cart so he could move it inside. The little robot held onto the cart so it didn't roll off accidentally which helped. 

"You know these things you buy when go out shopping? You see a thing and you just have to have it no matter what?" He started talking and he wasn't sure if he was talking to Dum-E or the unresponsive man inside the freezer.

"And then you drive home and you think it over and you get this squeezy feeling?" The chamber was on the cart now and he could roll it inside the bunker he called his home. With a little effort he manoeuvred the chamber so it was leaning upright against a wall. He stepped closer to wipe away the grime over the viewing window. 

"And then you're home and you see the thing you bought and you just think to yourself 'What on earth did I buy that for?'" He looked at he sleeping face in front of him, he looked peaceful, a slight stubble on his chin, hair still long. He looked exactly how Tony remembered him and not one bit older... Maybe it really had been seven years? 

Tony sighed and stepped back, crossing his arms. 

"You're a fucking impulse purchase, Barnes." 

\------

He didn't really regret it. At least he thought he didn't. 

Seven years ago he would have jumped on the opportunity to get his hands on this guy's throat, strangle the life out of him like Barnes had done with his mother. 

But seven years is a long time and the fight with Steve and Barnes was just a memory. Tony had come to terms with the death of his parents. Barnes had been brainwashed, he didn't have a choice, he had just been a weapon and HYDRA had been the ones pulling the trigger. He had known all that seven years ago when he had seen the video on that day in Siberia, but in his grief and anger he couldn't bring himself to care, he had wanted someone to pay.

Now he was sitting on the ground in front of the cryochamber the dim light from the single bulb above him illuminated Barnes' face. Tony wondered what had happened to him that he had ended up in cryo again, HYDRA must have gotten his hands on him at some point, but they had suffered as much as any other organization when the aliens took over. It didn't seem plausible, besides... they would have fixed him, used him again. 

The stump of Barnes' left arm was covered by some kind of cloth sleeve, it didn't look like any work had been done on it since Tony himself had blown the metal arm off. In some way Tony was glad because it meant he had an easier time subduing Barnes when - if - he woke him up, but on the other hand Tony felt bad for crippling the other man. 

With a sigh Tony got up and pulled a table with a few tools and a laptop closer to the chamber. 

"Alright, let's do this. Friday, you there?" He tapped a few commands on the laptop and it blinked to live. "Always, Sir."

He crouched down next to the chamber and looked for some access ports when he found what felt like a sticker at the back of it. Tony quickly got up and put the chamber completely upright so it was standing and not leaning and investigated further. It was a sticker with some writing in Kree language on it. He didn't understand it but he recognized it and he also knew what it meant. The chamber had belonged to some alien at some point and they had something translated for it. Tony carefully peeled the sticker off to find more writing underneath. This time in a human language and it only took him a moment to recognize this one as well. 

Wakandan. 

The cryochamber came from Wakanda, a nation that had stood strong in the face of an alien invasion but had ultimately fallen as well. 

Tony got up, feeling slightly sick. Barnes had been put into the chamber in Wakanda. Steve had taken him there after Siberia, Tony knew that much, but the Kree happened only a month later, Wakanda lasted the longest but even they had surrendered after a couple of weeks. Barnes had been in this thing for almost 7 years... He had no idea what has happened, if he was still alive in there. 

"Fuck." Tony hit glass over Barnes' face with the palm of his hand. "Fuck." He said again, it took him a moment to process all of this, the fact that this cryochamber had somehow survived for seven years and had traveled over continents without somebody thawing the guy out.

"You really have some bad luck, Barnes. And to have ended up with me of all people..." Tony shook his head and got to work again. He connected some cables from the laptop to the chamber hoping it not only kept Barnes on ice but had also still some processors intact so he could thaw him as well. He knew just opening the chamber would most likely kill Barnes so he had to do this right. 

"Friday, my love, can you find something?" He typed away on the lapTop, hoping to find the right program to start the process. 

"Of course, Sir, but even your flirting will not guarantee I'll find what you're looking for." 

Tony chuckled. Friday and Dum-E really were the only company he had left and Friday's snark especially helped to keep him sane, if that was still an option at this point.

"I think we can do this." He mumbled as he typed some more and he soon found what he was looking for, a few more lines of code, a finger triumphantly hit the enter button and...

Nothing happened. 

Tony sighed and stepped back, cocking his head a little as he looked at Barnes' peaceful face.

"Guess this is just going to take a while."

"The process has started, Sir." Friday confirmed. 

He got a couple of blankets ready and dug out a heater from under a mound of broken electrical devices and fixed it up. It was how he made a living these days, fixing broken tech, everything from radios to household devices to cars. 

Tony set up the heater and sat down in front of the cryochamber, wrapping a blanket around himself, just looking at Barnes' made him feel cold and he couldn't imagine how the guy must feel when he comes out of that thing. He also readied his revolver, making sure it was completely loaded and set it next to him. 

Then he waited.


	2. Chapter 2

It took nearly an hour before anything happened. 

Tony had nodded off at some point with his head on his knees and he jerked upright when a soft hissing sound came from the chamber.

"Process finished." Friday announced and Tony blinked at the cryochamber. Nothing has changed, Barnes still looked frozen and Tony thought for a moment that it hadn't work but the clamps on the side of the chamber were open now and Tony scooted closer.  
He pulled himself up, holding onto the chamber and carefully pried the lid open, more cold air rushed out that made him shiver.

Barnes didn't move, he was still restrained, Tony saw the thick leather straps but he also made no sign of breathing or being alive in general. He edged forward, placing his hand on the other's face. It was still cold but not freezing, Tony took that as a good sign but as time passed by he was getting worried that Barnes hadn't started to breath yet.

"Friday....he's not breathing." 

"May I suggest CPR?"

Tony rolled his eyes. 

"You gotta be kidding me." He quickly undid the straps and not sooner had he loosened the last one that an unconscious Barnes fell on top of him. Tony could barely keep himself upright as 200 pounds of former assassin landed on top of him. He somehow managed to get his arms under Barnes' but that only made matters worse as he scratched himself on the broken stump of the other's metal arm and immediately let go. They both toppled over and landed on the floor. Tony was stunned and needed a moment to reorient himself then he scurried backwards on all fours like Barnes had just attacked him. But it seemed the sudden motion had triggered something as Barnes started moving. 

He was convulsing, his entire body shaking, trying to take a breath and being unable to.

Tony stared, not knowing what to do until after a few seconds Barnes coughed up some blood and he took a gasping breath. At least he was alive, Tony thought. He scurried towards his gun, which he had completely forgotten until now and pointed it at Barnes' shaking form.

The other man hadn't noticed him at all, he had his face pressed to the ground still coughing up small bits of blood, his fingers twitching like he wanted to hold onto something. 

Tony felt bad. He had figured Barnes would just step out of the thing, maybe feeling a bit disoriented, but certainly not coughing up blood. He scooted a little bit closer, gun still up.

"Hey shhh, it's alright." He had meant to comfort the other, get him to calm down, but Barnes was startled badly at the noise and used all of what little strength he had and unresponsive limbs to get away from Tony only to hit his head on the heater that was a couple of inches away. He groaned in pain and started coughing again, no blood this time, Tony noted thankfully.

"Hey hey, don't, it's fine. I'm not gonna hurt you."

"Steve?" 

Tony almost laughed if it hadn't sounded so damn hurt. Barnes voice was barely a croak after seven years of disuse and it looked like even the single word had caused him pain. 

"No, not Steve, but I'm not gonna hurt you, I just wanna put a blanket on you, alright?" Tony put the gun down and pulled a blanket off the pile that he had prepared

Barnes turned his head a little towards him following the noise, he had his eyes squeezed shut like even the dim light was hurting his eyes. Tony really hoped the symptoms were only temporary and he cursed himself for not having set up proper medical care before thawing Barnes up. He hadn't expected to play nurse for the guy.

Tony very carefully draped a blanket over Barnes, who tensed under the slight contact. The ice crystals that had been on his hair had melted and had left it wet, pasting it to his skull and certainly not helping his situation.

"Can't see." Barnes croaked when Tony was leaning over him. "Hurts."

"I know...it's gonna get better." Tony hoped at least, his heart ached for the guy, he looked absolutely miserable. "I'm gonna take care of you... If you let me." 

Barnes just shivered uncontrollably but he didn't seem to want to move away again or maybe he didn't have the energy to.

Tony sighed and got up, picking up a first aid kit that hopefully still had some gauze in it. He kneeled next to Barnes' head, setting the kit down next to him.

"I'm going to touch your head now, alright?" When Barnes didn't move or say anything Tony gently traced his finger tips along the other's temple, pushing the wet hair away from his eyes. "I'll put something over your eyes until it gets better. I'd turn off the light but then we both can't see." Tony gave a slight chuckle, appropriate or not.

With slow and very careful movement he put to pads of gauze over Barnes' eyes then rolled a bandage over it, wrapping it around his head. Barnes was cooperative, not pulling away as Tony lifted his head. Tony made a note to wipe off the blood on his face once he got him settled. He didn't wrap it tight, not wanting it to feel like a blindfold, but firm enough that it didn't just slip off. 

"Better?" 

Barnes' facial features had relaxed a little, when Tony sat his head back down, now that he didn't have to squeeze his eyes shut anymore. 

"I'm gonna get you a bit more comfortable, I've got some more blankets..." Tony pulled the whole pile closer and draped another one over Barnes but realized the man was not going to get any warmer if he lied directly on the concrete floor. 

"So you gotta put up with me touching you for a while, you have to get on a blanket and if you're able to move at all some help would be appreciated." Tony started by wrapping the blankets already on Barnes a bit tighter around him, careful not to touch the stump of his left arm not knowing what reaction that would get him. 

"Come on, Barnes." Tony put a blanket next to Barnes' prone body, he was lying on his stomach and if Tony could get him on his right side he could push the blanket under him. He tried to telegraph his movements as best as he could, trailing his hand along Barnes' arm before holding onto his wrist and pulling slightly. "If you could roll onto your side that would be perfect."

Barnes didn't react immediately but he tried to get his limbs to work and pulled his legs up slowly, but without his left arm he couldn't roll over onto his right side very easily. Tony pulled his right arm and tried to push up his left side and with a very painful groan from Barnes they somehow made it. Tony angled Barnes' arm so his hand was under his head and adjusted his legs in a what he hoped was a stable side position, then proceeded to put the blanket under him. 

Tony was touching Barnes all over, pulling and nudging him onto the blanket while always talking and explaining what he did. At some point it looked like Barnes was about to throw up from the sudden movements but since he had nothing in his stomach it just stopped with some dry heaving and a shivering whine from the nausea. It wasn't until Tony started to rub some warmth into Barnes' back that the other man spoke again and it caught Tony by surprise.

"Stark." 

Tony immediately pulled back his hands, almost reaching for his gun again, but he realized Barnes was no threat to him in this state.

"So you noticed..." Tony had to remind himself that for Barnes it was only a couple of days since Siberia, of course he would remember his voice.

Barnes tried to lift his head a little, looking at Tony with his bandaged eyes. 

"Why?" 

Tony sighed, why indeed, he reached over again and gently laid his hand on Barnes' side and was surprised when the other didn't jump.

"Do you know how long you've been in that freezer?" He asked carefully, he knew the answer to that and Barnes knew that he knew and stayed silent. Probably trying to save his energy by not answering stupid questions, Tony thought.

"It's been seven years, Barnes. Seven years. And I guess I'm the last one you expected to see when you got out of it, but I don't know where Steve is, I don't know where anybody is. Hell, I don't even know how you made it from Wakanda to the States in one piece." He started to rub gently up and down Barnes's side, trying to comfort him, maybe even trying to comfort himself. Having to reveal such bad news to the other when he was already in such a vulnerable state made him feel horrible. 

"A lot has happened." Tony left it at that, they would have enough time to do a history lesson later. 

"Bucky." Barnes only said and Tony gave a confused grunt.

" 'name's Bucky."

"Oh... yes. Of course..." Tony was a bit dumbfounded. Bucky had relaxed somewhat under his touch and they stayed silent for a while.

" 'spected you to kill me." Bucky eventually said, the words still strained, his throat was probably raw from disuse and lack of water. Tony made a note to feed him something soon.

"Seven years ago I would have... I know for you it's probably only a few days since I wanted to rip your head off in Russia, but things have changed. I have changed. I've had a lot of time to think, to process, time I didn't have when I saw that video." Tony tucked the blankets a little bit tighter around Barnes, making sure he was completely wrapped up. 

Then Bucky started heaving again and Tony thought this time he really was going to throw up no matter what and got ready to hold him so he didn't suffocate on whatever did come up then he realized something.

Bucky wasn't heaving, he was weeping. 

Tony didn't know what to do, so he did the only thing he knew how to do. He talked.

"Hey, hey, shh it's alright, I'm not going to do anything to you. I know that's a lot to take in, but it's gonna be fine, just calm down, relax." He put forth a continuous stream of words to calm the other. Without hesitation he patted Bucky's head with one hand and rubbed circles on his back with the other but Bucky didn't calm down. In addition to the constant shiver that still wrecked his body now violent sobs joined too. Tony knew he'd probably be in the same state after what Bucky had been through, worse probably, if not dead.

"Bucky, come on. Tell me what I can do for you, anything. I know you're hurting, you can't see, you're cold - "

"Cold." Bucky mumbled in between sobs and then Tony made a decision. He got another blanket and piled it onto his legs, then without warning he wrapped his arms around Bucky and pulled his head and upper body on his lap. He didn't care that the metal stump scraped him again, he'd do something about that later. 

Tony cradled Bucky's bandaged head on the blanket in his lap, still murmuring comforting nothings. One hand was stroking Bucky's hair the other running down the his body massaging warmth into it. They stayed like this for a long time until Bucky's tremors subsided and only soft sobs could be heard. 

Tony struggled not to weep himself as tears welled in his eyes. Who would have thought a couple of hours ago when he bought the cryochamber that he would end up with this miserable heap of deadly assassin in his lap. Bucky was a broken man and his responsibility now.

He didn't regret it.


	3. Chapter 3

Bucky fell asleep, or passed out, Tony wasn't sure, but his shaking stopped, his breathing evened out and Tony had a feeling he was no longer in pain. He carefully set him down on the floor again, making a pillow with a blanket and tugging him in. After adjusting the heater Tony left Bucky's sleeping form and went to work on the cryochamber, he was going to find out why it left Bucky in such a bad state. 

It turned out that the chamber hadn't worked as well as Tony had first thought, he had run a couple of analysis on the power supply and temperature of the chamber over the years. Bucky had almost been thawed several times and not in the safe way. The power supply had failed and the temperature had risen way too fast until it had suddenly dropped again when the chamber was reconnected to power.

It didn't take a genius to figure out that wasn't good for anybody. Tony hoped Bucky could recover from it, he was especially worried about the guy's eyes. He was already down an arm, losing his sight too would be disastrous.

Bucky regained his strength. After a couple of hours he was able to sit up and eventually Tony helped him move to the couch where he was a lot more comfortable. Still wrapped in blankets Tony watched as Bucky slowly pushed up the bandages over his eyes and risked a look.

"Hey there, sleeping beauty." Tony greeted him. "Like what you're seeing?" 

"Don't know...you're blocking the view." Bucky said, looking straight at Tony, his voice still rough despite some water and warm soup. Tony just chuckled, relieved Bucky's eyes had recovered.

Bucky mostly slept. He kept the bandages on his eyes for a couple of days, only pushing them up slightly. When he didn't sleep Tony told him what had happened, told him everything he knew about what happened to the others. It wasn't much but Bucky listened. Tony knew Bucky tried to make a brave face, but he heard the sobs coming from the couch when Bucky pretended to sleep. Bucky had lost everything in his life, again, and was now stuck with him of all people. He really couldn't blame him and just hoped he would get better.

Food was a problem. The first time Bucky tried to eat some solid food he threw it up immediately and then refused to eat anything at all for several hours. It took Tony a lot of coaxing to get Bucky to drink some soup again. 

Tony fixed up a food processor and made some mush for him which he kept down a little bit easier but still made him feel sick. It was a slow process.

Bucky was eventually strong enough to move about on his own and Tony showed him what passed as his home. It was mostly just a workshop with some tables and piles of tech junk in the corners. A small kitchenet, a bed and a couch was everything else. A small bathroom was adjacent to the main room. Tony explained that they were in Malibu in what were the remains of the bunker he had once built under his villa. 

He always carried a blanket around with him, whether he was sitting next to Tony, watching him work on some household machine or reading something on the laptop that was also Friday. Tony had to turn down the brightness of the screen for Bucky, his eyes had gotten better, but he still avoided bright lights. Bucky always had a blanket around his shoulders and it proved to be a problem. The cloth sleeve covering his metal stump slipped off more times than not, especially with the blanket rubbing against it, and the sharp metal and wires caught on the soft material of the blanket. 

Tony observed Bucky, who for the third time in the last half an hour picked on the metal wires of his stump, trying to get them to not stick out as much, then pulling the blanket on top of it again. The fabric got caught and Bucky fumbled with it once more to get it loose. 

With a sigh Tony gathered his tools and walked over to him. He gestured to the empty spot on the couch asking for permission to sit down next to Bucky who scooted a little to the side looking at him questioningly. 

"Can I take a look at that?" Tony asked carefully, nodding to Bucky's shoulder. He didn't want to upset the other, it was him after all, who ripped the arm off.

Bucky hesitated and eyed Tony and the tools in his hands for a few seconds before carefully lifting the blanket off his shoulder. Tony left the tools on the couch and first examined the arm with his fingers, showing that he wasn't going to do anything Bucky didn't want him to do. 

"If I had the means to make you a new arm, I would, you know... I'm terribly sorry I did this to you." Tony couldn't look Bucky in the eyes but he knew the other was watching him. He felt bad seeing the other struggle, he regretted his actions from that day, but Tony couldn't linger on the thought He knew it would lead him down a dark path. A path he didn't want to go down again, it ended with him blaming the whole alien invasion on himself. 

"I can trim this down a little and if you let me I can put a cover on it, not like this cloth thing but made out of metal, smooth everything out so nothing gets stuck anymore." Tony dared to glance up, putting a small encouraging smile on his lips. "Only if you want though, no pressure." 

"I'd like that." Bucky answered almost immediately. There was a surprise in his eyes that Tony hadn't expected. 

He got to work, bending back the wires and cutting sharp edges, then measuring out how big the plate had to be in order to cover everything. Tony kept up a constant stream of babble, explaining what he did and making sure that Bucky would tell him if anything hurt him. It only took half an hour and a few adjustments until Tony could fit the plate and make sure nothing got stuck on the stump again. 

Tony gently draped the blanket over Bucky's shoulder again and smiled.

"All done."

Bucky carefully touched the addition to his body with his right hand, feeling for any edges that might still be there, but it was all covered up now. If at some point in the future Tony had the possibility to make him a new arm the connections would still be there under the metal plate, nothing was lost, it just meant Bucky was a little bit more comfortable.

"Thank you." Bucky said quietly.

"You're welcome, Buckeroo, it's the least I can do." Tony gave Bucky's head a few gentle strokes as he got up and walked back to his workbench. What he had just done only registered in his mind when he flopped down on his chair. With wide eyes he looked at Bucky, but the other man had snuggled up and closed his eyes, looking content. 

The next day Tony went out again, he had fixed up some stuff and travelled to the next town. He figured Bucky could use some more clothes than the few pieces he had on him in the chamber and the couple of shirts Tony was able to give him that fit him. Bucky didn't own anything really, he had been an object for seven years, shipped around and traveling from one owner to the next in his cryochamber. Even as the Winter Soldier he had never owned anything, he himself had been a possession of HYDRA. It made Tony sick to his stomach to think about how Bucky had been treated for almost 80 years now.

In the end Tony not only got Bucky a couple of clothes but also a nice soft pillow that the other could call his own, with how much Bucky slept it would certainly get used. He also got him a paper note book with a few pencils, it was worn and missing a few pages, but the best he could get out here. Tony had offered Bucky to use the laptop to write things down, when he had asked for a piece of paper, but the other man didn't like the idea too much. Tony didn't know if it was because he didn't want to type one handed or because the laptop was Tony's.

Bucky was still on the couch sound asleep when Tony returned, he looked peaceful just like had in the cryochamber. The difference was that he looked alive now, he was still pale but there was some color on his cheeks. Tony gently pushed some stray strands of hair out of Bucky's face before he arranged the pile of gifts next to the couch. He caught himself getting excited to see Bucky's reaction to them.

Tony woke up the next morning to find a piece of folded paper next to him. He turned on the light and looked over to Bucky on the couch, who was still sleeping. He must have gotten up some time during the night and seen the pile of clothes next to him. Bucky was lying on his new pillow, which in hindsight was way too big for the couch. Tony hadn't realized the thing had been so gigantic when he got it. He had also put on one of the new sweaters and, this made Tony's heart jump a little, Bucky was clutching the note book to his chest. 

Tony unfolded the piece of paper after watching Bucky sleep for way too long. The note read.

"Thank you...

For everything."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How does this get longer and longer.... I don't know. 
> 
> Next will be the epilogue though.


	4. Epilogue

"You can't still be cold." Tony said one day, when he saw Bucky shivering on the couch with the heater directly pointed at him. It had been several weeks now since Bucky had come out of the cryochamber. 

"I am... I don't ever feel warm." Bucky mumbled and curled up tighter. Tony really just wanted the guy to be comfortable and already made a plan to look for another heater or maybe an electric blanket when he went out again. Then Friday interrupted his thoughts very rudely. 

"May I suggest going outside?" 

Bucky ducked his head under the blankets, knowing Friday wasn't talking to him. 

"Do we have visitors?" It wasn't very likely but sometimes people came by when they wanted to trade something, assuming they had good intentions, sometimes people just wanted to fuck shit up. Tony had enough defenses in that case.

"No. It is a sunny 80 degrees outside and my sensors show no activity."

"Fridaaaaaaaaaaay." Tony drawled her name, knowing she was up to something and he wanted her to spit it out.

"My databases show that sunlight is vital to vitamin D production and a healthy metabolism. It might aid in Mr. Barnes' recovery." The AI stated matter of factly.

"Awwwrrr, I didn't know you cared about Buckeroo, Friday." Tony teased, glancing over to the pile of blankets that was Bucky.

"I care about all of Sir's friends."

Friend. The word echoed inside Tony's brain as he slowly turned his head towards Bucky. Friend... 

Bucky had become his friend, hadn't he? They were friends. Tony wasn't sure. He had taken care of the guy for some time now and he had grown fond of him, but there were always two people to a friendship. He had no idea how Bucky felt. 

Bucky didn't talk much, spent most of his time on the couch either sleeping or writing in his notebook, but he was also very curious, always interested in what Tony was doing when he was repairing something. He often joined him and watched him work, even if it was just for half an hour before he went back to the couch. 

Tony still on occasion had to hold back Bucky's hair when he got sick from food. He had gotten a lot better at keeping it down, but there were still bad days and sometimes, Tony recalled, Bucky had fallen asleep in Tony's arms while he had comforted him. 

Then there was also the note. Tony kept it in the back pocket of his jeans. 

He pushed all the pondering aside to think about what Friday had meant. Bucky hadn't stepped out of the bunker since Tony had gotten him out of the cryobox. It was around late spring now and already very warm outside, it certainly wouldn't hurt to get him into the sun a little bit. 

"You wanna go outside, Buckster?" Tony called and watched as the pile of blankets moved.

"I don't want to leave." Bucky said after a moment. He sounded hurt to Tony's surprise and it occurred to him that he might think Tony wanted to send him away.

Tony got up and walked over to him, sitting down next to the blanket pile and started petting what he thought was Bucky's head.

"You don't have to leave, I just meant going outside for a while and then coming back inside. It's very warm and sunny outside, you might enjoy it." Bucky relaxed under his hand and then popped his head up. 

"Can I take the blankets?" 

Tony chuckled and nodded.

"Of course." 

Bucky threw a couple of blankets over Tony so he could carry his pillow on his own. He still had a blanket around his shoulders when they walked to the door. 

Tony unlocked the door and pulled it open with a flourish, smiling at Bucky, who immediately scrambled back and hissed, covering his eyes.

The bright sunlight was streaming into the dim bunker and Tony slapped himself mentally. The light was even a little too bright for him at first glance, for Bucky it must be torture. He just about managed to stop Bucky from shuffling back to the couch by holding him gently by the shoulders. 

"You want me to burn my eyes out, Stark?" The last name hurt and Tony winced apologetically. Bucky's eyes might have gotten used to the dim light of the bunker but sunlight was a whole different story.

"No, of course not...let me think for a moment..." He looked around the workshop. There had to be something Bucky could use. Sunglasses were probably not strong enough. 

"Wait here, don't move." 

It needed some searching and digging in the various piles of tools and techjunk but Tony eventually found a pair of welding goggles that the held out to Bucky. 

"That'll help." 

Bucky eyed them somewhat suspiciously but then bent down and offered his head for Tony to put them on. He still had his pillow in his hand so Tony obliged and carefully placed them over Bucky's eyes and pulled his hair out of the band, smoothing it down. 

"Is this better?" 

Tony asked, still caressing Bucky's head. The other carefully looked over to the still open door and nodded. 

"Yes, thank you."

Tony wrapped his arm around Bucky and guided him outside. Bucky was apprehensive at first after having spent several weeks in the bunker Tony couldn't blame him and he assured him that there were no aliens and that they were pretty isolated. 

Bucky's expression could only be described as bliss as he stood outside with his face turned towards the sun. Tony smiled and headed back inside but Bucky was in front of him so fast he almost crashed into him.

"Where are you going?" Bucky looked hurt, even with the goggles covering his eyes.

"Just getting the rest of the blankets and some stuff for me to work on." Tony was surprised to see Bucky so concerned, maybe he still thought he would leave him out here alone. 

Bucky hovered next to the entrance until Tony returned to the door only then did he look around and choose a spot to sit down. Tony left the pile of blankets next to Bucky and turned to work on a few machines that he had brought outside with the cart. He had to admit that it was nice to work in the sun with the soft breeze that came from the ocean. Occasionally he glanced over to Bucky who had laid out one blanket on the ground and was working on arranging the other blankets in some specific way only beknownst to him.

Tony got absorbed in his work and fixed up a fridge and two fans before he took a step back and looked over the fixed appliances. They would get them a good trade in town with summer coming up. 

He hadn't heard anything from Bucky in some time which wasn't unusual, Bucky barely made a sound when he was a awake, much less when he was sleeping. 

Tony walked over to where Bucky and found him in a nest of blankets. 

Nest was the appropriate word to describe it. It was almost perfectly round with blankets piled on the edge to form a rim and Bucky was lying in the middle on his oversized pillow. Tony tried not to laugh and wake Bucky up, but it looked hilarious. Bucky had also taken off his sweater, which meant he was finally warm and that was the whole point of coming out here. 

Tony spent some time just looking at Bucky, taking everything in, the way his hair splayed out on the pillow, the small peak of metal that could be seen under Bucky's shirt where the collar hat splipped to the side, the blissful expression on his face. 

Then Bucky started to stir and dug his right shoulder into the ground, stretching his back, he turned to look up at Tony, cocking his head slightly to the side. 

"Hey there, sleeping beauty. Is there any space left for me?" Tony chuckled, not really expecting Bucky to let him into his nest, but Bucky smiled and scooted to the side making some room for Tony on his right side.

A little perplexed Tony got onto his knees and crawled onto the blankets, lying down next to Bucky but keeping some distance. It only took a few seconds before Tony had a bunch of former Winter Soldier on top of him when Bucky rolled over and laid his head and upper body on Tony's chest. 

Tony wrapped his arms around the other man almost out of instinct, one going to Bucky's hair immediately. 

"Everything alright, Bucky?" Tony asked concerned, but Bucky just nuzzled his face into Tony's chest.

"Better than alright." Bucky mumbled and Tony relaxed, stroking Bucky's hair and back, a big smile blooming on his face. 

He pressed a small kiss to the top of Bucky's head and could feel the other smile. 

Getting that cryochamber all those weeks ago had turned out to be one of his better ideas, Tony had to admit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you have liked this story please tell me in the comments :) 
> 
> I plan on uploading some more WinterIron soon.


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